Ferrari Chairman Montezemolo Eying Politics?

Ferrari's charismatic head, Luca di Montezemolo, may be considering a move into Italy's political scene. The quintessentially stylish, youthful-for-his-years Italian recently told press he'd like to be reborn as a politician.

At a recent lunch, Montezemolo put forth what sounds an awful lot like a platform: calling for consensus and community over infighting; competitiveness with global industrial rivals; liberalization of markets; plans for economic growth. If he did decide to run for office, he'd have the backing of Italia Futura, a group of industrialists and entrepreneurs he leads.

More details on Montezemolo's political talk can be found at the Reuters source below. But what we're interested in is: what effect might a move to politics have on Ferrari?

Montezemolo is currently the chairman of the Prancing Horse, has been elemental in the operation of Ferrari's F1 program, and played a central role in the turnaround of Ferrari's retail car operations during the 1990s. If a move into politics takes Montezemolo out of Ferrari, who will replace him?

That concern may be premature, however, as Montezemolo has previously said he's in no hurry to leave Ferrari for politics. According to F1 commentator James Allen, however, Montezemolo may simply be waiting for the right opportunity, searching for the time he needs to accomplish the task.